Source : Canadian Press

OTTAWA (CP) - Couch potatoes could end up watching a lot more ads under an
incentive program designed to encourage broadcasters to produce more Canadian
dramas.

However, at least two well-known actors aren't optimistic the plan will
produce more Canadian TV shows.

TV stations could broadcast up to eight minutes more advertising for every
hour of original Canadian drama they produce, says the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission.

The exact amount of additional advertising would depend on conditions such as
the level of Canadian participation in the production, how much is spent and
when it's aired. Advertising content would be limited to 14 minutes per hour, up from 12.

"Broadcasters who choose to take advantage of this incentive program will
apply for conditions of licence that will allow them to broadcast additional
minutes of advertising if they meet the commission's criteria," the CRTC said in a news release.

Fiona Reid, who last year took on the voice of Miss Sour Pickle in the
animated adventure series Jacob Two-Two, says she doesn't believe incentives
will produce more TV dramas.

"I think it's the wrong direction to take," she said Monday after the CRTC
announcement.

"We're asking them to obligate the private broadcasters."

Reid, well-known for her role in the 1970's sitcom King of Kensington, says
drama programming has been severely diminished in the five years since
regulations dictating Canadian content were loosened.

"We've already seen since 1999, with a relaxing and eroding of the
regulations, that broadcasters have not stepped up to the plate," she said.

"Instead of 12, one-hour dramas on their airwaves, we now have three. We don't think incentives work."

Sonja Smits, who plays Megan Redner on the CTV drama The Eleventh Hour, says
she doesn't trust broadcasters to come through with new programming.

"It's better than nothing . . . a few may bite at it," Smits acknowledged.

"But to trust (broadcasters) once more, is to put the issue back in their
court, with nothing that obliges them to do it," she added.

Under the plan, broadcasters could earn the right to air between 30 seconds
and eight minutes of additional advertising for each hour of original Canadian drama they broadcast.

For instance, broadcasters who increase their Canadian drama audience share
by a set amount could increase the amount of advertising they air by 25 per
cent.

They'd get a further 25 per cent increase if they spend a pre-determined
amount of money producing the drama.

The CRTC estimates the changes will give the biggest broadcasters $80,000 for
each additional advertising minute they air during prime time.

"We're pleased that the CRTC has recognized that there is a crisis in
Canadian drama production," said Stephen Waddell, national executive director of ACTRA, the union representing performers.

But Waddell wonders what mechanisms - if any - will be put in place to ensure
broadcasters live up to their end of the deal.

For the largest English-language networks, the incentives would apply only to
qualifying drama in excess of 26 hours per year. Drama programs that don't
receive funding from the Canadian Television Fund would be exempt.

"This will encourage broadcasters to invest directly in the creation of new
independently-produced drama projects," said the CRTC.

The commission promises additional measures soon, to help French-language TV
maintain original French drama programming in peak viewing hours.

© Canadian Press